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Dragons will battle as hard as they can to keep Lydiate

NEWPORT Gwent Dragons have pledged to do all they can to keep star flanker Dan Lydiate as the vultures begin to circle.

The 24-year-old blindside is out of contract at the end of the season and big-spending French outfit Racing Metro are rumoured to be about to offer him a bumper two-year deal.

Dragons director of rugby Robert Beale revealed that he held provisional talks with Lydiate before the back row forward suffered a broken ankle against Edinburgh last month.

He is hopeful that they can convince their star to pen a new deal, but acknowledges that any offer they make could be blown out of the water by French or English rivals.

“I spoke to Danny before his injury and said that as a business we would like to know where he feels his future lies,” said Beale. “If he thinks it lies with the Dragons then it’s up to me to talk to the board to keep him playing rugby in this region.

“We want him here for the foreseeable future and will do everything in our power to keep him here, but we have our limits.

“We will do the best we can, just as we did with Luke Charteris and Aled Brew (who left in the summer for Perpignan and Biarritz respectively).

“But I believe Danny is happy here – he is very much a home bird and his life revolves around rugby here, his family and the farm (in Llandrindod Wells).

“He is at a different stage of his career to Luke and I don’t think he is motivated by finances, but I suppose if someone is dangling big pots of money in front of you it might be hard to resist.

“But at the moment he is firmly fixed on the road to recovery and getting back with Wales so he can throw his hat in the ring for Lions selection.”

Lydiate, capped 27 times, is now being looked after the Welsh Rugby Union’s medical team in a bid to speed up the recovery process.

It is expected that doctors will decide in three months’ time whether to remove a plate that has been inserted into his left foot.

That is a similar situation to the one that faced ex-Dragons full-back Martyn Thomas after he suffered a horror leg break.

It was decided to leave the plate in but Thomas, now with Gloucester, fractured the same leg when he suffered a blow an inch above it on his return.

Toby won't be far behind either when his contract runs out and who can blame them, who wants to lose week after week......

Anyone up for hiring a bus and going to Parc Y Scarlets!!!!

Toby won't be far behind either when his contract runs out and who can blame them, who wants to lose week after week......
Anyone up for hiring a bus and going to Parc Y Scarlets!!!!mussym

Toby won't be far behind either when his contract runs out and who can blame them, who wants to lose week after week......

Anyone up for hiring a bus and going to Parc Y Scarlets!!!!

Score: 0

Robert Shillabeer
2:33pm Thu 11 Oct 12

They are both home lads with very strong ties to family life. Perhaps they will go but I don't think it will be to France and probably not for a few years yet. Enjoy rugby at home then go to France or England to get that little nest egg for retirement. It seems to be what others are doing.

They are both home lads with very strong ties to family life. Perhaps they will go but I don't think it will be to France and probably not for a few years yet. Enjoy rugby at home then go to France or England to get that little nest egg for retirement. It seems to be what others are doing.Robert Shillabeer

They are both home lads with very strong ties to family life. Perhaps they will go but I don't think it will be to France and probably not for a few years yet. Enjoy rugby at home then go to France or England to get that little nest egg for retirement. It seems to be what others are doing.

Score: 0

corpardguy
5:01pm Thu 11 Oct 12

Dan has stayed because of loyalty so far, and thats great. NGD did the right thing by him when he was injured. Good for all concerned
However, he should not be asked to sacrifice wages because of that. It must be his choice to chase trophies, but the club should and MUST reward talent and not penalise it.
Same for Toby, Dan. Prydie and Tonda.........ITS PROFESSIONAL SPORT. they have short time to make top cash they must maximize earnings.

Dan has stayed because of loyalty so far, and thats great. NGD did the right thing by him when he was injured. Good for all concerned
However, he should not be asked to sacrifice wages because of that. It must be his choice to chase trophies, but the club should and MUST reward talent and not penalise it.
Same for Toby, Dan. Prydie and Tonda.........ITS PROFESSIONAL SPORT. they have short time to make top cash they must maximize earnings.corpardguy

Dan has stayed because of loyalty so far, and thats great. NGD did the right thing by him when he was injured. Good for all concerned
However, he should not be asked to sacrifice wages because of that. It must be his choice to chase trophies, but the club should and MUST reward talent and not penalise it.
Same for Toby, Dan. Prydie and Tonda.........ITS PROFESSIONAL SPORT. they have short time to make top cash they must maximize earnings.

Score: 0

kalwales@hotmail.com
5:19pm Thu 11 Oct 12

Oh here we go more False Promises by the great regional board and management, lets look back shall we "we will do everything we can to keep Aled, Luke, Fussell, Joe B etc" but what happened?? they left because they were offered measley contracts, Toby & Dan can do WHEY better than the region they are currently at an di wish them both th every best and advise them to leave when they can !!

Oh here we go more False Promises by the great regional board and management, lets look back shall we "we will do everything we can to keep Aled, Luke, Fussell, Joe B etc" but what happened?? they left because they were offered measley contracts, Toby & Dan can do WHEY better than the region they are currently at an di wish them both th every best and advise them to leave when they can !!kalwales@hotmail.com

Oh here we go more False Promises by the great regional board and management, lets look back shall we "we will do everything we can to keep Aled, Luke, Fussell, Joe B etc" but what happened?? they left because they were offered measley contracts, Toby & Dan can do WHEY better than the region they are currently at an di wish them both th every best and advise them to leave when they can !!

Score: 0

Monster Munch McCoy
6:44pm Thu 11 Oct 12

Unfortunately we are going to lose all our best players starting with Dan. I do not blame the players at all for going. In the case of Dan I think he should go as soon as possible. Not because of chasing trophies or the need to win every week but simple economics and the short career span.
The sport is getting too physical and I believe players like Dan will have shorter careers than most so they have to get as much out of it when they are at the top of there game. The way he tackles and the amount of injuries that he has already suffered I will be very surprised if Dan is still playing top flight when he is 30 (I hope I am wrong).
Regional crowds are not big enough to stop the rot and it is top quality players that help win matches and draw the crowds in. Therefore welsh rugby is currently in a downward spiral. There is a simple solution however and that is for the WRU to part finance some of our Welsh players to help the regions keep them. It is well publicised that the WRU are making good money. Financial support to keep some of all the regions top player (i.e. Dan, Toby, Jamie Roberts, Alun Wyn, Jon Davies etc) could actually be cost effective in long run by drawing in bigger crowds.

Unfortunately we are going to lose all our best players starting with Dan. I do not blame the players at all for going. In the case of Dan I think he should go as soon as possible. Not because of chasing trophies or the need to win every week but simple economics and the short career span.
The sport is getting too physical and I believe players like Dan will have shorter careers than most so they have to get as much out of it when they are at the top of there game. The way he tackles and the amount of injuries that he has already suffered I will be very surprised if Dan is still playing top flight when he is 30 (I hope I am wrong).
Regional crowds are not big enough to stop the rot and it is top quality players that help win matches and draw the crowds in. Therefore welsh rugby is currently in a downward spiral. There is a simple solution however and that is for the WRU to part finance some of our Welsh players to help the regions keep them. It is well publicised that the WRU are making good money. Financial support to keep some of all the regions top player (i.e. Dan, Toby, Jamie Roberts, Alun Wyn, Jon Davies etc) could actually be cost effective in long run by drawing in bigger crowds.Monster Munch McCoy

Unfortunately we are going to lose all our best players starting with Dan. I do not blame the players at all for going. In the case of Dan I think he should go as soon as possible. Not because of chasing trophies or the need to win every week but simple economics and the short career span.
The sport is getting too physical and I believe players like Dan will have shorter careers than most so they have to get as much out of it when they are at the top of there game. The way he tackles and the amount of injuries that he has already suffered I will be very surprised if Dan is still playing top flight when he is 30 (I hope I am wrong).
Regional crowds are not big enough to stop the rot and it is top quality players that help win matches and draw the crowds in. Therefore welsh rugby is currently in a downward spiral. There is a simple solution however and that is for the WRU to part finance some of our Welsh players to help the regions keep them. It is well publicised that the WRU are making good money. Financial support to keep some of all the regions top player (i.e. Dan, Toby, Jamie Roberts, Alun Wyn, Jon Davies etc) could actually be cost effective in long run by drawing in bigger crowds.

Score: 0

kalwales@hotmail.com
6:55pm Thu 11 Oct 12

MMM i totally agree with you in your quote :-)

MMM i totally agree with you in your quote :-)kalwales@hotmail.com

MMM i totally agree with you in your quote :-)

Score: 0

East Newport Dave
6:59pm Thu 11 Oct 12

When they say they will 'do their best' to keep him, what does that mean? Are they willing to offer him £250k per year because it would take that sort of figure. 'Doing their best' will involve offering him half of that and then watching him walk out of the door. But at least the books will be balanced! It'll be a chance for the Development Region to develop another young player being paid peanuts.All the while the long-suffering Dragons supporters continue to pay through the nose to watch sub-standard rubbish.

When they say they will 'do their best' to keep him, what does that mean? Are they willing to offer him £250k per year because it would take that sort of figure. 'Doing their best' will involve offering him half of that and then watching him walk out of the door. But at least the books will be balanced! It'll be a chance for the Development Region to develop another young player being paid peanuts.All the while the long-suffering Dragons supporters continue to pay through the nose to watch sub-standard rubbish.East Newport Dave

When they say they will 'do their best' to keep him, what does that mean? Are they willing to offer him £250k per year because it would take that sort of figure. 'Doing their best' will involve offering him half of that and then watching him walk out of the door. But at least the books will be balanced! It'll be a chance for the Development Region to develop another young player being paid peanuts.All the while the long-suffering Dragons supporters continue to pay through the nose to watch sub-standard rubbish.

Score: 0

Euwan Usami
7:57pm Thu 11 Oct 12

Monster Munch McCoy wrote…

Unfortunately we are going to lose all our best players starting with Dan. I do not blame the players at all for going. In the case of Dan I think he should go as soon as possible. Not because of chasing trophies or the need to win every week but simple economics and the short career span.
The sport is getting too physical and I believe players like Dan will have shorter careers than most so they have to get as much out of it when they are at the top of there game. The way he tackles and the amount of injuries that he has already suffered I will be very surprised if Dan is still playing top flight when he is 30 (I hope I am wrong).
Regional crowds are not big enough to stop the rot and it is top quality players that help win matches and draw the crowds in. Therefore welsh rugby is currently in a downward spiral. There is a simple solution however and that is for the WRU to part finance some of our Welsh players to help the regions keep them. It is well publicised that the WRU are making good money. Financial support to keep some of all the regions top player (i.e. Dan, Toby, Jamie Roberts, Alun Wyn, Jon Davies etc) could actually be cost effective in long run by drawing in bigger crowds.

Agree completely with that. Central Contracts have been discussed I know. The only sticking point has been that the WRU would have the power to move the players around from region to region. So we end up with one big super region removing the identities of the current four as it has with the premiership clubs. It's all about priorities at the end of the day; if you want a successful Welsh side it seems the price is an even more contrived and manufactured domestic competition.

[quote][p][bold]Monster Munch McCoy[/bold] wrote:
Unfortunately we are going to lose all our best players starting with Dan. I do not blame the players at all for going. In the case of Dan I think he should go as soon as possible. Not because of chasing trophies or the need to win every week but simple economics and the short career span.
The sport is getting too physical and I believe players like Dan will have shorter careers than most so they have to get as much out of it when they are at the top of there game. The way he tackles and the amount of injuries that he has already suffered I will be very surprised if Dan is still playing top flight when he is 30 (I hope I am wrong).
Regional crowds are not big enough to stop the rot and it is top quality players that help win matches and draw the crowds in. Therefore welsh rugby is currently in a downward spiral. There is a simple solution however and that is for the WRU to part finance some of our Welsh players to help the regions keep them. It is well publicised that the WRU are making good money. Financial support to keep some of all the regions top player (i.e. Dan, Toby, Jamie Roberts, Alun Wyn, Jon Davies etc) could actually be cost effective in long run by drawing in bigger crowds.[/p][/quote]Agree completely with that. Central Contracts have been discussed I know. The only sticking point has been that the WRU would have the power to move the players around from region to region. So we end up with one big super region removing the identities of the current four as it has with the premiership clubs. It's all about priorities at the end of the day; if you want a successful Welsh side it seems the price is an even more contrived and manufactured domestic competition.Euwan Usami

Monster Munch McCoy wrote…

Unfortunately we are going to lose all our best players starting with Dan. I do not blame the players at all for going. In the case of Dan I think he should go as soon as possible. Not because of chasing trophies or the need to win every week but simple economics and the short career span.
The sport is getting too physical and I believe players like Dan will have shorter careers than most so they have to get as much out of it when they are at the top of there game. The way he tackles and the amount of injuries that he has already suffered I will be very surprised if Dan is still playing top flight when he is 30 (I hope I am wrong).
Regional crowds are not big enough to stop the rot and it is top quality players that help win matches and draw the crowds in. Therefore welsh rugby is currently in a downward spiral. There is a simple solution however and that is for the WRU to part finance some of our Welsh players to help the regions keep them. It is well publicised that the WRU are making good money. Financial support to keep some of all the regions top player (i.e. Dan, Toby, Jamie Roberts, Alun Wyn, Jon Davies etc) could actually be cost effective in long run by drawing in bigger crowds.

Agree completely with that. Central Contracts have been discussed I know. The only sticking point has been that the WRU would have the power to move the players around from region to region. So we end up with one big super region removing the identities of the current four as it has with the premiership clubs. It's all about priorities at the end of the day; if you want a successful Welsh side it seems the price is an even more contrived and manufactured domestic competition.

Score: 0

Euwan Usami
7:59pm Thu 11 Oct 12

East Newport Dave wrote…

When they say they will 'do their best' to keep him, what does that mean? Are they willing to offer him £250k per year because it would take that sort of figure. 'Doing their best' will involve offering him half of that and then watching him walk out of the door. But at least the books will be balanced! It'll be a chance for the Development Region to develop another young player being paid peanuts.All the while the long-suffering Dragons supporters continue to pay through the nose to watch sub-standard rubbish.

I would love to disagree with you Dave but I think you are uncomfortably close to the truth there. :(

[quote][p][bold]East Newport Dave[/bold] wrote:
When they say they will 'do their best' to keep him, what does that mean? Are they willing to offer him £250k per year because it would take that sort of figure. 'Doing their best' will involve offering him half of that and then watching him walk out of the door. But at least the books will be balanced! It'll be a chance for the Development Region to develop another young player being paid peanuts.All the while the long-suffering Dragons supporters continue to pay through the nose to watch sub-standard rubbish.[/p][/quote]I would love to disagree with you Dave but I think you are uncomfortably close to the truth there. :(Euwan Usami

East Newport Dave wrote…

When they say they will 'do their best' to keep him, what does that mean? Are they willing to offer him £250k per year because it would take that sort of figure. 'Doing their best' will involve offering him half of that and then watching him walk out of the door. But at least the books will be balanced! It'll be a chance for the Development Region to develop another young player being paid peanuts.All the while the long-suffering Dragons supporters continue to pay through the nose to watch sub-standard rubbish.

I would love to disagree with you Dave but I think you are uncomfortably close to the truth there. :(

Score: 0

corpardguy
9:22pm Thu 11 Oct 12

Central contracts should have been part of the set-up from day one.
WRU better fix this fast.
When/if we do go to central contracts lets go back to CLUB rugby as well, that seemed to work well back in the day.
That will keep the player production line humming, it always did.

Central contracts should have been part of the set-up from day one.
WRU better fix this fast.
When/if we do go to central contracts lets go back to CLUB rugby as well, that seemed to work well back in the day.
That will keep the player production line humming, it always did.corpardguy

Central contracts should have been part of the set-up from day one.
WRU better fix this fast.
When/if we do go to central contracts lets go back to CLUB rugby as well, that seemed to work well back in the day.
That will keep the player production line humming, it always did.

Score: 0

Monster Munch McCoy
10:13pm Thu 11 Oct 12

Euwan Usami wrote…

Monster Munch McCoy wrote…

Unfortunately we are going to lose all our best players starting with Dan. I do not blame the players at all for going. In the case of Dan I think he should go as soon as possible. Not because of chasing trophies or the need to win every week but simple economics and the short career span.
The sport is getting too physical and I believe players like Dan will have shorter careers than most so they have to get as much out of it when they are at the top of there game. The way he tackles and the amount of injuries that he has already suffered I will be very surprised if Dan is still playing top flight when he is 30 (I hope I am wrong).
Regional crowds are not big enough to stop the rot and it is top quality players that help win matches and draw the crowds in. Therefore welsh rugby is currently in a downward spiral. There is a simple solution however and that is for the WRU to part finance some of our Welsh players to help the regions keep them. It is well publicised that the WRU are making good money. Financial support to keep some of all the regions top player (i.e. Dan, Toby, Jamie Roberts, Alun Wyn, Jon Davies etc) could actually be cost effective in long run by drawing in bigger crowds.

Agree completely with that. Central Contracts have been discussed I know. The only sticking point has been that the WRU would have the power to move the players around from region to region. So we end up with one big super region removing the identities of the current four as it has with the premiership clubs. It's all about priorities at the end of the day; if you want a successful Welsh side it seems the price is an even more contrived and manufactured domestic competition.

Another simple rule. If you develop the player from a young age and he comes through your academy then you get funding to try and keep him. If not then no extra cash. That would make the regions try and develop quality players as they would reap the reward further down the line.
There probably a down side to that as well but they have got to try something.

[quote][p][bold]Euwan Usami[/bold] wrote:
[quote][p][bold]Monster Munch McCoy[/bold] wrote:
Unfortunately we are going to lose all our best players starting with Dan. I do not blame the players at all for going. In the case of Dan I think he should go as soon as possible. Not because of chasing trophies or the need to win every week but simple economics and the short career span.
The sport is getting too physical and I believe players like Dan will have shorter careers than most so they have to get as much out of it when they are at the top of there game. The way he tackles and the amount of injuries that he has already suffered I will be very surprised if Dan is still playing top flight when he is 30 (I hope I am wrong).
Regional crowds are not big enough to stop the rot and it is top quality players that help win matches and draw the crowds in. Therefore welsh rugby is currently in a downward spiral. There is a simple solution however and that is for the WRU to part finance some of our Welsh players to help the regions keep them. It is well publicised that the WRU are making good money. Financial support to keep some of all the regions top player (i.e. Dan, Toby, Jamie Roberts, Alun Wyn, Jon Davies etc) could actually be cost effective in long run by drawing in bigger crowds.[/p][/quote]Agree completely with that. Central Contracts have been discussed I know. The only sticking point has been that the WRU would have the power to move the players around from region to region. So we end up with one big super region removing the identities of the current four as it has with the premiership clubs. It's all about priorities at the end of the day; if you want a successful Welsh side it seems the price is an even more contrived and manufactured domestic competition.[/p][/quote]Another simple rule. If you develop the player from a young age and he comes through your academy then you get funding to try and keep him. If not then no extra cash. That would make the regions try and develop quality players as they would reap the reward further down the line.
There probably a down side to that as well but they have got to try something.Monster Munch McCoy

Euwan Usami wrote…

Monster Munch McCoy wrote…

Unfortunately we are going to lose all our best players starting with Dan. I do not blame the players at all for going. In the case of Dan I think he should go as soon as possible. Not because of chasing trophies or the need to win every week but simple economics and the short career span.
The sport is getting too physical and I believe players like Dan will have shorter careers than most so they have to get as much out of it when they are at the top of there game. The way he tackles and the amount of injuries that he has already suffered I will be very surprised if Dan is still playing top flight when he is 30 (I hope I am wrong).
Regional crowds are not big enough to stop the rot and it is top quality players that help win matches and draw the crowds in. Therefore welsh rugby is currently in a downward spiral. There is a simple solution however and that is for the WRU to part finance some of our Welsh players to help the regions keep them. It is well publicised that the WRU are making good money. Financial support to keep some of all the regions top player (i.e. Dan, Toby, Jamie Roberts, Alun Wyn, Jon Davies etc) could actually be cost effective in long run by drawing in bigger crowds.

Agree completely with that. Central Contracts have been discussed I know. The only sticking point has been that the WRU would have the power to move the players around from region to region. So we end up with one big super region removing the identities of the current four as it has with the premiership clubs. It's all about priorities at the end of the day; if you want a successful Welsh side it seems the price is an even more contrived and manufactured domestic competition.

Another simple rule. If you develop the player from a young age and he comes through your academy then you get funding to try and keep him. If not then no extra cash. That would make the regions try and develop quality players as they would reap the reward further down the line.
There probably a down side to that as well but they have got to try something.

Score: 0

silurix
10:19pm Thu 11 Oct 12

when Dan and Toby depart the Dragons will become , De Facto, a development region. No formal announcement will need to be made - the general perception of the Dragon's new status will help to make it an accomplished fact. Once the Dragons are in this position, I think it would only be a matter of time before the WRU formalised it. This may well have implications for funding levels as a region with no input to the national team could hardly expect the same funding as those that actually supply players. At this point I would expect the change of status to become permanent. Whether this would be a good thing is debatable.
Just talking hypothetically there - stranger things have happened though.

when Dan and Toby depart the Dragons will become , De Facto, a development region. No formal announcement will need to be made - the general perception of the Dragon's new status will help to make it an accomplished fact. Once the Dragons are in this position, I think it would only be a matter of time before the WRU formalised it. This may well have implications for funding levels as a region with no input to the national team could hardly expect the same funding as those that actually supply players. At this point I would expect the change of status to become permanent. Whether this would be a good thing is debatable.
Just talking hypothetically there - stranger things have happened though.silurix

when Dan and Toby depart the Dragons will become , De Facto, a development region. No formal announcement will need to be made - the general perception of the Dragon's new status will help to make it an accomplished fact. Once the Dragons are in this position, I think it would only be a matter of time before the WRU formalised it. This may well have implications for funding levels as a region with no input to the national team could hardly expect the same funding as those that actually supply players. At this point I would expect the change of status to become permanent. Whether this would be a good thing is debatable.
Just talking hypothetically there - stranger things have happened though.

Score: 0

Monster Munch McCoy
10:22pm Thu 11 Oct 12

Just read the article on BBC website "Wales caretaker coach Rob Howley hints at central contracts". How spooky is that! Promise I am not Rob Howley.

He goes on to say "I thinks it's important we take time and the right business model is put in place to make sure we keep our Welsh players in Wales.". Looks like we have solved most of that here tonight also.

From doom and gloom to light at the end of the tunnel in a few short hours!!! Regional rugby on the up, Dragons for Amlin Cup.

Just read the article on BBC website "Wales caretaker coach Rob Howley hints at central contracts". How spooky is that! Promise I am not Rob Howley.
He goes on to say "I thinks it's important we take time and the right business model is put in place to make sure we keep our Welsh players in Wales.". Looks like we have solved most of that here tonight also.
From doom and gloom to light at the end of the tunnel in a few short hours!!! Regional rugby on the up, Dragons for Amlin Cup.Monster Munch McCoy

Just read the article on BBC website "Wales caretaker coach Rob Howley hints at central contracts". How spooky is that! Promise I am not Rob Howley.

He goes on to say "I thinks it's important we take time and the right business model is put in place to make sure we keep our Welsh players in Wales.". Looks like we have solved most of that here tonight also.

From doom and gloom to light at the end of the tunnel in a few short hours!!! Regional rugby on the up, Dragons for Amlin Cup.

Score: 0

kalwales@hotmail.com
11:40pm Thu 11 Oct 12

i just feel for the devoted Region Fans because you are all Committed and Devoted and Loyal and this is what the Region are using to their advantage, when you fans start using and voting with your feet then the RTegion will have to (A) Pull their fingers out of their rears & (B) Speculate to Accumulate & (C) Cut out the Empty Promises of Star names that the region have No Intention of Bringing in, the Region will continue to use the Fans devotion to their advantage once you all stand up to them ONLY THEN they will listen !!

i just feel for the devoted Region Fans because you are all Committed and Devoted and Loyal and this is what the Region are using to their advantage, when you fans start using and voting with your feet then the RTegion will have to (A) Pull their fingers out of their rears & (B) Speculate to Accumulate & (C) Cut out the Empty Promises of Star names that the region have No Intention of Bringing in, the Region will continue to use the Fans devotion to their advantage once you all stand up to them ONLY THEN they will listen !!kalwales@hotmail.com

i just feel for the devoted Region Fans because you are all Committed and Devoted and Loyal and this is what the Region are using to their advantage, when you fans start using and voting with your feet then the RTegion will have to (A) Pull their fingers out of their rears & (B) Speculate to Accumulate & (C) Cut out the Empty Promises of Star names that the region have No Intention of Bringing in, the Region will continue to use the Fans devotion to their advantage once you all stand up to them ONLY THEN they will listen !!

Score: 0

Euwan Usami
11:54pm Thu 11 Oct 12

corpardguy wrote…

Central contracts should have been part of the set-up from day one.
WRU better fix this fast.
When/if we do go to central contracts lets go back to CLUB rugby as well, that seemed to work well back in the day.
That will keep the player production line humming, it always did.

The idea of regional rugby was to reduce the number of sides in the top flight to increase the standard of the rugby. Going back to clubs is a backward step in the greater scheme of things and defeats the object of regional contracts. The WRU can't afford to run 4 top flight sides, how would it cope with 12 sides AND pay inflated wages for most of the players? The current system makes sense on paper but it's still too contrived to be accepted by the fans. Add to that the negative style of the modern game and its an uphill battle to make it work.

[quote][p][bold]corpardguy[/bold] wrote:
Central contracts should have been part of the set-up from day one.
WRU better fix this fast.
When/if we do go to central contracts lets go back to CLUB rugby as well, that seemed to work well back in the day.
That will keep the player production line humming, it always did.[/p][/quote]The idea of regional rugby was to reduce the number of sides in the top flight to increase the standard of the rugby. Going back to clubs is a backward step in the greater scheme of things and defeats the object of regional contracts. The WRU can't afford to run 4 top flight sides, how would it cope with 12 sides AND pay inflated wages for most of the players? The current system makes sense on paper but it's still too contrived to be accepted by the fans. Add to that the negative style of the modern game and its an uphill battle to make it work.Euwan Usami

corpardguy wrote…

Central contracts should have been part of the set-up from day one.
WRU better fix this fast.
When/if we do go to central contracts lets go back to CLUB rugby as well, that seemed to work well back in the day.
That will keep the player production line humming, it always did.

The idea of regional rugby was to reduce the number of sides in the top flight to increase the standard of the rugby. Going back to clubs is a backward step in the greater scheme of things and defeats the object of regional contracts. The WRU can't afford to run 4 top flight sides, how would it cope with 12 sides AND pay inflated wages for most of the players? The current system makes sense on paper but it's still too contrived to be accepted by the fans. Add to that the negative style of the modern game and its an uphill battle to make it work.

Score: 0

Robert Shillabeer
3:51pm Fri 12 Oct 12

Euwan, the WRU made £63 million profit last year at least half of that should be fed back into Welsh rugby at all levels starting with the regions who feed the national side followed by Premier clubs and further on down. £30 million would make both regional rugby and other clubs much more secure. They don't have give the money simply loan it on a long term basis at a very low interest rate. It's over to the WRU.

Euwan, the WRU made £63 million profit last year at least half of that should be fed back into Welsh rugby at all levels starting with the regions who feed the national side followed by Premier clubs and further on down. £30 million would make both regional rugby and other clubs much more secure. They don't have give the money simply loan it on a long term basis at a very low interest rate. It's over to the WRU.Robert Shillabeer

Euwan, the WRU made £63 million profit last year at least half of that should be fed back into Welsh rugby at all levels starting with the regions who feed the national side followed by Premier clubs and further on down. £30 million would make both regional rugby and other clubs much more secure. They don't have give the money simply loan it on a long term basis at a very low interest rate. It's over to the WRU.

Score: 0

Robert Shillabeer
4:19pm Fri 12 Oct 12

Euwan, you may have a point, but with the WRU making a very large profit and the idea behind the regionalisation of rugby between the National side and the club side they need to feed more money into the regional set in order to retain the better talent they wanted to establish in the first place bUt instead they slap each other on the back and put the profit of £63 million into thier bank and are rather reluctant to support the game at regional level, club level and the grass roots level. Until they start sharing the success of Welsh rugby throughout the sport in Wales the lower levels will struggle. By the way I strongly believe in regional rugby as it is easy to support a team that is accessible to all supporters in Wales in East and West Wales and perhaps a north Wales team in the near future.

Euwan, you may have a point, but with the WRU making a very large profit and the idea behind the regionalisation of rugby between the National side and the club side they need to feed more money into the regional set in order to retain the better talent they wanted to establish in the first place bUt instead they slap each other on the back and put the profit of £63 million into thier bank and are rather reluctant to support the game at regional level, club level and the grass roots level. Until they start sharing the success of Welsh rugby throughout the sport in Wales the lower levels will struggle. By the way I strongly believe in regional rugby as it is easy to support a team that is accessible to all supporters in Wales in East and West Wales and perhaps a north Wales team in the near future.Robert Shillabeer

Euwan, you may have a point, but with the WRU making a very large profit and the idea behind the regionalisation of rugby between the National side and the club side they need to feed more money into the regional set in order to retain the better talent they wanted to establish in the first place bUt instead they slap each other on the back and put the profit of £63 million into thier bank and are rather reluctant to support the game at regional level, club level and the grass roots level. Until they start sharing the success of Welsh rugby throughout the sport in Wales the lower levels will struggle. By the way I strongly believe in regional rugby as it is easy to support a team that is accessible to all supporters in Wales in East and West Wales and perhaps a north Wales team in the near future.

Score: 0

corpardguy
4:36pm Fri 12 Oct 12

Central Contracts would support between 30-35 Wales Squad players and another 20-30 'prospects' picked by the national coaching team for likely future honours on a yearly basis.
Regions should be given selection power over Wales selected players until Wales needs them, no ands ifs or buts...
Everything supports the National side.
Whats remaining out of the WRU profits should be distributed between regional ground and safety programs and promoting the game at lower levels.
The WRU should operate as a non-profit organisation, this would ensure maximum benefit to the game and get a lot of tax breaks that are not applicable at the moment to the WRU operating as a for profit business.

Central Contracts would support between 30-35 Wales Squad players and another 20-30 'prospects' picked by the national coaching team for likely future honours on a yearly basis.
Regions should be given selection power over Wales selected players until Wales needs them, no ands ifs or buts...
Everything supports the National side.
Whats remaining out of the WRU profits should be distributed between regional ground and safety programs and promoting the game at lower levels.
The WRU should operate as a non-profit organisation, this would ensure maximum benefit to the game and get a lot of tax breaks that are not applicable at the moment to the WRU operating as a for profit business.corpardguy

Central Contracts would support between 30-35 Wales Squad players and another 20-30 'prospects' picked by the national coaching team for likely future honours on a yearly basis.
Regions should be given selection power over Wales selected players until Wales needs them, no ands ifs or buts...
Everything supports the National side.
Whats remaining out of the WRU profits should be distributed between regional ground and safety programs and promoting the game at lower levels.
The WRU should operate as a non-profit organisation, this would ensure maximum benefit to the game and get a lot of tax breaks that are not applicable at the moment to the WRU operating as a for profit business.

Score: 0

silurix
6:13pm Fri 12 Oct 12

a minor point about the £63M "profit".

QUOTE:
"The figures for the Grand Slam year ending June 2012 showed a pre-tax profit of £2.4m and the WRU said it was on target to be debt-free by 2021."

The £63M is annual "turnover" i.e. cash coming in. After WRU has paid all its immediate debts, interest and running expenses for the year it has £2.4M left in the kitty - which will be further reduced by tax. This higher "turnover" means that the WRU is no longer in danger of being overwhelemed by its debts as it is making a small profit. This means that it now has greater room to manoeuvre but not that it has unlimited funds at its disposal. Putting 30 players on, say, £200K contracts would cost £6M. That can't happen without renegotiating the current funding arrangements or allowing the debt to build up again. Obviously , these figures are speculative so it is hard to be precise about what needs to be done. All I can say is that, IMO, the WRU does have some scope to help the regions further but still need to be careful. There's no guarantee that they will reach £63M turnover next year.

a minor point about the £63M "profit".
QUOTE:
"The figures for the Grand Slam year ending June 2012 showed a pre-tax profit of £2.4m and the WRU said it was on target to be debt-free by 2021."
The £63M is annual "turnover" i.e. cash coming in. After WRU has paid all its immediate debts, interest and running expenses for the year it has £2.4M left in the kitty - which will be further reduced by tax. This higher "turnover" means that the WRU is no longer in danger of being overwhelemed by its debts as it is making a small profit. This means that it now has greater room to manoeuvre but not that it has unlimited funds at its disposal. Putting 30 players on, say, £200K contracts would cost £6M. That can't happen without renegotiating the current funding arrangements or allowing the debt to build up again. Obviously , these figures are speculative so it is hard to be precise about what needs to be done. All I can say is that, IMO, the WRU does have some scope to help the regions further but still need to be careful. There's no guarantee that they will reach £63M turnover next year.silurix

a minor point about the £63M "profit".

QUOTE:
"The figures for the Grand Slam year ending June 2012 showed a pre-tax profit of £2.4m and the WRU said it was on target to be debt-free by 2021."

The £63M is annual "turnover" i.e. cash coming in. After WRU has paid all its immediate debts, interest and running expenses for the year it has £2.4M left in the kitty - which will be further reduced by tax. This higher "turnover" means that the WRU is no longer in danger of being overwhelemed by its debts as it is making a small profit. This means that it now has greater room to manoeuvre but not that it has unlimited funds at its disposal. Putting 30 players on, say, £200K contracts would cost £6M. That can't happen without renegotiating the current funding arrangements or allowing the debt to build up again. Obviously , these figures are speculative so it is hard to be precise about what needs to be done. All I can say is that, IMO, the WRU does have some scope to help the regions further but still need to be careful. There's no guarantee that they will reach £63M turnover next year.

Score: 0

Monster Munch McCoy
6:27pm Fri 12 Oct 12

Silurix. Thanks for clarifying the money situation. I was wondering where £63M profit was coming from. £63M profit would of equated to approx £1billion turnover. The WRU could of solved the national debt as well as the player drain with that type of cash.
Still £2.4M is not bad for a year so a small gesture to topup the salaries to help our regions keep their star players would be money well spend. For some players £20K extra on what our regions are offering could be the difference between them staying or going.

Silurix. Thanks for clarifying the money situation. I was wondering where £63M profit was coming from. £63M profit would of equated to approx £1billion turnover. The WRU could of solved the national debt as well as the player drain with that type of cash.
Still £2.4M is not bad for a year so a small gesture to topup the salaries to help our regions keep their star players would be money well spend. For some players £20K extra on what our regions are offering could be the difference between them staying or going.Monster Munch McCoy

Silurix. Thanks for clarifying the money situation. I was wondering where £63M profit was coming from. £63M profit would of equated to approx £1billion turnover. The WRU could of solved the national debt as well as the player drain with that type of cash.
Still £2.4M is not bad for a year so a small gesture to topup the salaries to help our regions keep their star players would be money well spend. For some players £20K extra on what our regions are offering could be the difference between them staying or going.

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